1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an ornament or jewelery piece which emits a fragrance characteristic of a natural botanical material contained in the ornament. More particularly, this invention is directed to an ornament or jewelry piece which is formulated and molded from natural botanical materials and synthetic resins to provide the free release of fragrance from the botanical material. Such an ornamental molding exhibits the slow, long-term release of natural fragrance from the botanical constituent of the molding, as well as from particular essential oils incorporated in the molding.
The molded ornament can be utilized as a jewelry component, such as a bead or pendant, or as a display form or sculpture.
The invention also relates to a method for processing natural botanical materials, such as fragrant flowers and buds, into a dried, particulate constituent which is combined with complementary essential oils and a minor amount of a synthetic resin before molding into a fragment ornamental product. Such a fragrant ornamental product can be further shaped into beads, pellets and forms, which are suitable for jewelry, sculptures and display forms.
2. The Prior Art
Natural botanical materials have been used throughout history as fragrant ornamental devices, both on the person and as displays. However, these devices have always involved the natural form of the botanical materials, such as flowers for corsages, and table arrangements. The natural forms of these botanical materials have limited use because of their inability to be incorporated into jewelry and permanent displays, as well as their short useful life prior to wilting, decay and the termination of their natural fragrance.
Many attempts have been made to utilize flowers, leaves, bark, roots and herbs to provide a scented accent for personal wear or display. These attempts have produced products of uncertain structure and articles which lack the precise from for modern jewelry and the active wearing of present life styles. It would be useful and desirable to have natural botanical materials compounded with polymers to permit molding in precise forms. However, most polymers require high percentages of polymer to botanical material ratios and high heats of fusion, which together result in a plastic form with botanical materials as minor components.
In an attempt to avoid the deficiencies of the use of natural botanical materials to provide fragrances for ornaments and jewelry, the prior art has used the essential oils of such materials, as well as synthetically formulated perfumes, in inorganic fillers and inert ornamental structures to provide fragrant jewelry and ornaments.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,553,296 to Jaeckel, an artificial flower is disclosed which is molded from a polyolefin powder that has previously been contacted with a perfume or essential oil. Such moldings have difficulty in producing the soft fragrance of natural materials and the qualities of plastic articles for display or ornamentation have limited public acceptance.
Natural biological materials have been suggested for use in jewelry in U.S. Pat. No. 3,997,686 to McClure. However, because animal excrement is the suggested jewelry component, natural fragrance is specifically discouraged. The patent teaches the coating of the excrement to protect against odor and an internal binder is not contemplated.
French Pat. No. 610,105 of Sept. 17, 1928 teaches the incorporation of a perfume, or the essence of a perfume, into an artificial pearl. This patent does not suggest the use of natural botanical materials as the substance of an artificial pearl.
Other prior art teachings of general interest are: U.S. Pat. No. 195,324 to Atkinson which discloses a porcelain structure which absorbs essential oils, U.S. Pat. No. 1,421,329 to Welch which describes jewelry having an encapsulated liquid, U.S. Pat. No. 3,828,577 to Haynes which shows a nasal ornament which can include a perfume ball of undisclosed structure, U.S. Pat. No. 4,020,156 to Murray et al which describes water soluble beads which release fragrance, German Pat. No. 2,052,434 of Apr. 27, 1972 which discloses a porous sintered metal which can absorb perfume, German Pat. No. 2,511,212 of Sept. 23, 1976 which shows jewelry with a special receptacle for the retention of perfume, and French Pat. No. 684,956 wherein an artificial pearl has perfme incorporated in the exterior coating or the entire structure thereof.
French Pat. No. 650,144 discloses a paste or liquid perfume encapsulated in jewelry.
These prior art teachings fail to disclose the use of natural botanical materials as a constituent of an ornament or jewelry piece wherein the materials impart their natural fragrance and texture to such devices. The prior art teachings require supplementary fragrance materials as the sole source of fragrance in the prior art devices. These shortcomings and others apparent in the prior art are overcome by the present invention which is described below.